Learning Leadership

Leaders Leave a Legacy

Leaders know what they want to be remembered for.

They know what they want to accomplish, who they want to become, what they want to have done, who they want to be remembered for, and for why they did what they did.

As a leader, I want to be remembered as someone who loved and who served.

Who loved people in all walks of life. Regardless of status, disability, race or color. To be remembered for having compassion, respect and honor for everyone by showing it on a daily basis.

Who served people in all walks of life. Someone who knew what his God given gifts were, and who used them to the fullest extent that he could. Who did everything he could to serve and help people, and in the process also served as a great witness of a Christ Follower at work for nonbelievers.   

Take Away's from Choosing to Cheat by Andy Stanley

There's a group of twelve men who are close to my heart and who I pray for on a daily basis. Most of the men I've never met, but I feel that I know them through their books and teaching lessons.

One of these men is Andy Stanley. Many of his leadership teachings seem to resonate with me so much. Many times I read his books or listen to his leadership lessons and feel as if he prepared that specific lesson or book just for me!

Another one of these times came when I read one of his books entitled, Choosing to Cheat: Who Wins When Family and Work Collide? Choosing to Cheat is a short 100 page book with a simple message that leaders will be forced to "cheat" in their lives. They're going to have to "cheat" their family out of the time which they deserve for the sake of working hard and becoming successful. Or the leader is going to have to "cheat" work out of the duties and responsibilities that the leader should or could do, in order to maintain the time needed for his family.

Here are a few take ways from this books which I really recommend for any leader:

• Someone is always going to be cheated - As leaders we only have so much time. As a result, someone is going to get "cheated." Someone at work on the leader's team isn't going to get the time he or she needs for a project. Or a son or daughter is going to have a dance recital ballet where her father doesn't show up because he's busy at work. Every leader is forced to cheat in some areas, but it's up to the leader to manage his life and priorities to decide where he cheats.
• Hard work isn't always what brings us rewards and success - Andy explains how success rarely comes directly from the hours of hard work, time and dedication to a job. But success normally comes from people we meet accidentally or an opportunity thrown our way we didn't know about,
• Don't give your family your leftovers - If you're a leader with a family, your family deserves to get your best. A daughter should not have to settle for her daddy's leftovers. She shouldn't only see him late at nights after he's worked all day and is totally burnt out and tired. She should be able to spend time with him when he's alert, awake, energetic and excited to spend time with her.
• For the sake of keeping priorities in alignment, you're going to have to allow important work things to slide - As you make the commitment to cheat at work so you can fully devote your time at home, you're going to have to find yourself releasing and letting go of opportunities at work. You're going to have to leave meetings early and say no to new opportunities because you committed to be home on time.

Andy Stanley's book, Choosing to Cheat has been one of the most influential books in my life as a leader. It certainly was a message I needed to hear. I suggest you pick it up and give it a read if you're a leader who has a big vision and a family you need to balance that vision with.

It's a small book about 100 pages, so you can sit down and give it a read in one sitting.

Leaders Know Who They Are

Leaders have an identity. They know who they are and what they stand for.

As leaders there are often people who try to knock us off our center. They criticize us, scrutinize us, tell us we're no good.

If a leader isn't dead set on knowing exactly who he/she is, then that leader's in for some trouble.

To be an effective leader you've got to have a clear picture of who you are.

Successful people grow and share what they know!

I often talk quite a bit about what I'm reading, what I'm learning and how I'm growing. One of my favorite types of blogs posts is sharing with you what I learned from reading an outstanding book or attending an amazing conference.

One of the authors I read and listen to regularly is Mark Sanborn. On Thursday he wrote a great post entitled, On Growth: Be a River.

In the post he shares how some of his successful friends and colleagues have invested heavily in their growth and how they pass on what they learned.

After reading the post I realized successful people grow and share what they know!

Give Mark's writing a full read here and learn more about how successful people grow and what they do with what they know.

PS - Mark, if you're reading I love your blog content, but I can't wait for your next book!

Two Leadership Quotes from Tiger Woods

We all have problems and issues.

Things we've done or are doing that we're not proud of. Every single one of us has problems, some are more severe than others.

I know there is a lot of talk going around about Tiger Woods right now. Too much in my opinion. The guy has a problem, did some terrible things (haven't we all did things we're not proud of), and he is now paying the price for those terrible things.

I wrote a worthy post about him a couple years ago which you can read here. Much of what I said there still holds true.

I listened to Tiger's statements today and found two key quotes in what he said:

"It's not what you achieve in life that matters, it's what you overcome."

Some things in life come easy. So it's not what you do, but it's the problems and obstacles that we must overcome to achieve them.

"I am the one who needs to change."

He took responsibility for his actions.

I realize there might not be a whole lot of substance and authority behind these statements, but I believe there is some truth to them both for leaders and golfers.

Preparing for Being Mentored

Yesterday I wrote about The Need for Being Mentored. Now for some follow up thoughts from yesterday's post showing you how I prepare for meetings with my mentors.

Preparation is a key element to any leader getting the most out of his mentoring relationship. Whenever I meet with Steve or Mike, we never get together unless I have provided them with 5 - 10 pages of preparation notes several days before our meeting.

These preparation notes gives them the info they need to aide their mentoring and coaching of me. Here's that I include in the mentoring preparation that I give to them.

1. "Here's What You Said" - This is where I re-write all the notes I took from the last time we met. I rewrite all the key phrases, advice, principles and philosophies they told me. Whenever I write down the Here's What You Said stuff, the mentor is sometimes surprised and says, "Did I really say that?" In a way, they are actually learning through our mentoring relationship because they're seeing their words in print and it helps them to clarify their thinking and content.
2. "Here's What I Did" - This is where I outline all of the work I've been doing since we last met. I will tell them what I did to act on the advice and coaching they gave me. I tell them what's happening at work and personally. I do my best to paint a picture for them of what I've been doing and how I'm making progress on my vision, dreams and goals.
3. "Here's What I Learned" - This is where I share my distinctions on what I've learned from what they said and what I've done over the past month. I talk about how I'm applying what they taught me and what it means to me.
4. "Here's What I Need Coaching On" - This is where I list 3 - 5 areas that I need some coaching and help from my mentor. I will tell him about areas that I'm working on where I need some coaching and mentoring. I'll tell them about a critical decision I need to make, personal relationships stuff, or I'll share with them an area in work and my own leadership that I think I can do a better job. Even though I provide several different coaching topics, I leave it up to my mentor to pick one and give me coaching based on what he thinks I need the most help with and what he can offer the most help with too.

These preparation notes allows my mentors to have a clear picture of where I am, so they can do the best job possible to help me get where I want to go.

The Need for Being Mentored

It's no secret that leaders need mentors in their life. They need someone who has been further, who is older and who is more experienced than the leader so that he can learn and glean from that mentor.

Because leaders are often being stretched, they need a mentor who can come alongside them to help and support them in their work.

Because leaders often have a big vision for the future they need someone who can mentor them and help them in their growth.

Because leaders' vision are often so much bigger than themselves and their ability, they need all the help they can get.

And a mentor is a perfect way to help aide the leader in his growth and development professionally and personally.

I personally have two mentors in my life: Steve Elliott and Mike Savage.

Every month I spend about an hour with each of them. Steve and I meet at Starbucks at 6am on the first Wednesday of the month, and Mike and I often talk on the phone once a month on the weekend.

Tomorrow I'll make a post where I share with you how I prepare for my two mentors. I have a great system that I use which allows me to get the most of out their time and expertise.

Strength & Courage

Much of the work you and I do as leaders stems from two things: courage and strength.

Courage to step out and take a risk. To have faith and confidence in ourselves that we'll be able to make it happen, even if we don't know how.

Strength to endure tough times and tough criticism. Leaders often pave a way where no one has been before, and that takes strength from them and their team to stand up against adversity and obstacles.

Master Two Things: Preparation & Performance

I love simple concepts that are powerful and are able to change the way we do things and operate. And this is one of them.

In life and at work, as an individual and an organization, there are two things you need to master: preparation & performance.

• Preparation - This is the work we do to get ready for battle. It's the constant day to day activities that we hold as habits which is preparing us for our future. It's your ability to set goals and standards for your life that you want to live up to. Preparation can come in the form of quiet time with yourself, or time with your team. Most of my preparation time is done by myself early in the morning.
• Performance - This is your ability to perform and make it happen. It's your ability to make the goals and activities you set in preparation and bring them to fruition. For me, performance always comes after I've prayed and prepared.

Learnings from The Promise Doctrine

Recently I began reading The Promise Doctrine co-authored by my friend Jason Womack.

As I've "worked" through this workbook over the last month, I've realized several things about promises. They are:

• It's easy to make promises, but hard to keep them - Man, it's easy to say with your lips what might be hard to do with your back.
• To keep your promises, monitor them regularly - If you make a promise, it can be easy to forget what you promised, to who you promised and when you promised it. Keep an eye on your promises by having a safe, secure place that you can capture and write down what promises you've made, that way you can make sure you follow through and keep them.
• Your promises will probably have to be rescheduled - Maybe it's just me, but it seems that most of my promises have to be rescheduled. Maybe I make too many promises, or I don't give myself enough of a time to complete them, but it seems to be often that I have to reschedule or renegotiate a promises that I've made.

I'm sure there are many other promise principles to be extracted from The Promise Doctrine, but those are the ones I've taken so far.

Leaders Think Forward

Recently I listened to an interview from the guys at Catalyst with Rick Warren, Senior Pastor of Saddleback Church and author of The Purpose Driven® Life: What on Earth Am I Here For?.

It's no secret that Rick Warren is an amazing leader who's built a church and led a movement that has saved thousands of people to Christ.

As I listened to the interview, I noticed how forward thinking he was. In the interview he outlined how him and his staff at Saddleback had started the church in 1980 with four decades of planning. He said they had a specific focus for the church for each decade that he wanted the church to focus on and work on.

Pretty amazing that as a small unknown pastor who barely knew what he was doing, had the foresight and thought to be planning 40 years ahead!

As a leader, are you thinking forward? What do you see in your life and your organization one year ahead, five years ahead, twenty years ahead, forty years ahead?

Quotes from my desk (part 4)

This is the final post in a four part series entitled, Quotes from my desk. I've shared with you four quotes that I see daily on my desk.

If you missed the other parts of this series, here's the links:

• Part 1
• Part 2
• Part 3

Now,

For the final quote!

"As a leader, you'll find yourself doing what others have not done and going where others have not gone. In exchange, you must understand that you will make mistakes no one else can and feel pains no one else has." - Craig Groeschel

Wow, heavy stuff Craig.

Just to give you a background on Craig, he's the pastor of LifeChurch.tv. LifeChurch.tv is a new innovative way of doing ministry that's been a little controversial and challenged by many "traditional" church people.

So if anyone knows how it feels to "make mistakes no one else can and feel pains no one else has" it's Craig.

Sometimes as leaders we feel like we're the odd person out. Because of the vision we have for the future and what we want to do to serve, help people, or create, we are sometimes seen as "different."

The difficult part is often we're trying to lead people somewhere that they've never been before, but we've never been there either. So we're building the plane while it's in the air!

Especially if you're a leader working to do things that no one else has. You're embarking on something that very few people have done before.

Do you know what the reward is for paving a path that no one has gone down before? Now others can drive down that path.

Now that you've paved a path that no one else have previously ridden, others can easily follow your path.

Examples: United Way proved that fundraising could be done in an easy and effective way asking for a small amount of money from a lot of people. And they proved it by becoming the largest fundraiser in the country. Since then several other charities have realized they can do similar fundraising methods and be successful.

Billy Graham has paved a path for other evangelists to follow in his footsteps. He showed an entire generation of future evangelists what is possible and what can be done, now it's on them to walk the path.

As a leader you'll make mistakes no one else is making and feel pain no one else is feeling. But remember those mistakes and pain are a result of paving a new path that other future leaders can now follow.

Quotes from my desk (part 3)

Here's part 3 of my writing about the four quotes I keep on my desk. You can read the the first quote here and the second quote here.

Every woman at some level wants:

• To be fought for
• An adventure to share
• A beauty to unveil

John Eldredge in Wild at Heart

OK,

So this isn't exactly a leadership quote. But it's one that I keep on my desk and review. This quote is a little more difficult to describe because it doesn't exactly deal with leadership. But it does deal with male masculinity and strength that leaders need.

Like most men, I sucked at dating when I started trying it!

There were several things I had to work on in myself to become a man who would attract the woman I wanted in my life. So this quote really stuck with me and resonated with me because I couldn't really provide these three things to a woman and remain who I was. If I was going to provide these three things, I was going to have to change and improve myself.

If I was going to fight for my woman, have an adventure to share with her, and allow her to unveil her beauty, I was going to have to become "even more of a man."

And in the process of becoming "even more of a man," that "manness" has transferred over to my leadership ability. The fact that I'm working hard on myself displays a growth focus that every leader needs.

Every leader has to be focused on continually growing and improving everyday. Cause if he's not, then the organization isn't going to grow either. The organization will only grow if the leader does.

Quotes from my desk (part 2)

Here's part 2 of my writing about the four quotes I keep on my desk. To read yesterday's quote, go here.

"Remember, you're only responsible to what God asks of you, no more! And if he asks it of you, He will also provide the way." - Jennifer McLaughlin

Jennifer has a lot of influence on my being that she's my girlfriend. So the words she speaks to me have more weight than what other people might say.

Jennifer left this quote as some encouragement to me on my Facebook page last November. At that time I was responsible for leading A Day of Hope, a project where we had committed to feed 350 families for Thanksgiving.

It's a pretty heavy burden considering that A Day of Hope is a volunteer based organization that has no staff. I'm the unofficial leader who did my best to organize people and events to raise funds, gather food, and raise awareness for our cause.

I had left a comment on my Facebook page saying how I was feeling a little overwhelmed and burnt out, and Jennifer replied with her words above. A little encouragement was something I really needed to hear at that time.

Quotes from my desk (part 1)

I love quotes!

So many timeless lessons can be learned and passed on from generation to generation simply from short one-sentence quotes.

Over the next four days I'll share will you four quotes that I currently have displayed on the desk in my administrative office.

Here we go!

"The poorest person in the world is a person without a vision" - John C. Maxwell

I heard this quote on an old John Maxwell INJOY Life Club lesson from 1985 entitled, Victorious Because of a Vision.

I really think it's true, people who don't have a vision are poor. They don't have anything to look forward to. They don't have anything to push towards. They don't have anything to work towards. They don't have anything to grow them self and stretch them self for.

It's important to distinguish that "vision" isn't always for leaders. Anyone can have a vision of the future. A mother can have a vision for how she wants her children to grow up. A boyfriend and girlfriend can have a vision for how they want their marriage to look like in years to come. And someone can have a vision for the people they want to serve and help.

Vision isn't only reserved for leaders of organizations. It's for anyone, and if someone doesn't have a vision for something in life, that person is truly poor.

I'm not a biblical scholar, but I believe it's in proverbs that says, "Without a vision the people perish."